Wrestling veteran praises John Cena's former rival; claims he wasn't "intimidated" during recent WWE appearance
Former WWE manager Jim Cornette recently praised Austin Theory for his mic work against Pat McAfee and The Rock.
Theory confronted his former rival Pat McAfee after the former announcer made a surprise appearance on SmackDown last week. While the two were in the middle of a heated promo battle, The Rock made his return, much to the amazement of the fans in attendance.
On a recent episode of the Jim Cornette Experience, the former WWE manager mentioned that Theory possibly cut his best promo during last week's episode of SmackDown. He pointed out that the rookie sounded nervous during his feud with John Cena, but he was much better with McAfee. Cornette felt that the exchange felt natural and was good to watch.
"This is the best promo I've heard of Austin Theory sounding like Austin Theory should sound like. Remember, with Cena, it was like he was intimidated. He let Cena bowl over him. It was five months ago. Point is, he looked like he was more comfortable here, he was more natural. He didn't sound like he was reciting anything or he was intimated. He mocked and derided McAfee." [From 2:35 - 3:20]
You can watch the full video here:
Jim Cornette feels Austin Theory has matured as a WWE Superstar
During the same conversation, Cornette mentioned that Theory could have been intimated by the pure star power of John Cena during their feud. However, this time with McAfee, that was possibly not bothering him.
"Theory being in the ring with Cena, I can understand that would be intimidating. A young guy who's got in the business obviously because he was a wrestling fan, right? McAfee is a big deal, but not in Austin Theory's world where he was this intimidating. He's had more experience and he's getting more comfortable. He wasn't a bashful, young wrestling fan in the ring like he was with Cena." [From 3:25 - 3:52]
Jim Cornette feels that enough time has gone by since Theory's WrestleMania feud with The Cenation Leader, and the 26-year-old WWE star has gained more experience since then.
Did you enjoy seeing Theory rub shoulders with Pat McAfee and The Rock? Sound off in the comments section below.
If you use the quotes from this article, please credit the Jim Cornette Experience and add a H/T to Sportskeeda for the transcript.